Ingo Rademacher claims ABC kicked him out of “general hospital” for Trump support and politics, not vaccine refusal and religion.Actor’s lawsuit faces dismissal hearing later this month

Exclusive: As with so many family breakdowns in America in recent years, Ingo Rademacherlegal dispute with ABC On his 2021 dismissal general Hospital It all comes down to Donald Trump and the politics of vaccines, according to a former soap opera actor.

Ahead of the all-important March 30th summary judgment hearing litigation over a year agoattorneys for plaintiff Rademacher yesterday filed papers opposing the Disney-owned network’s motion to waive the lawsuit. Howard alleges that he filed a religious exemption request for his client’s company. COVID Vaccine requirements (read here). “Instead, they imposed a phony process on him designed to fail and intended to cover up his political views, the real reason for Ingo’s dismissal.”

More specifically, Rademacher claims he was actually hit with an axe. GH EP Frank Valentini and others on the show objected to his voting for Trump in 2020, accusing him of a “false hope” of getting the jab:

…the show’s producers and writers didn’t like Donald Trump and his comments about restrictive Covid policies, so they decided to drop him from the show and “recast” the role. It meant hiring someone else to play the character of. Ingo was one of his most popular actors. general HospitalHe was under contract until June 2022, with producers previously discussing a contract extension. Criticism of Ingo’s political commentary was prevalent around the time ABC decided to fire him It also led to the creation of #FireIngo. So instead of being honest with his Ingo, ABC used the Covid vaccine policy as an excuse to get rid of him.

Rademacher, a 20-plus year veteran of the 60-year running daytimer, was canned from his GH “Jasper Jacks” role. Late 2021 For refusing to comply with the House of Mouse Covid vaccine mandate, according to ABC.His fellow actor Steve Burton was a pink slip November 2021 About not getting vaccinated some crew members. Unlike Burton, on Dec. 13, 2021, Rademacher, an openly Vax skeptic of German-Australian descent, went after ABC with dismissal over a wide-ranging civil rights lawsuit. Summary of lengthy lawsuit: Rademacher argued that the network’s denial of him religious exemption from the vaccine mandate was a scathing example of discrimination.

After various briefs and other documents were filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court proceedings, ABC moved to dismiss all of them earlier this year. The network also rejected his Rademacher’s own motion to have the court rule on summary judgment on claims of religious discrimination under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, citing its responsibility to provide a “safe work environment” during the pandemic and elsewhere. .

Like America 2023’s deep division, Rademacher and ABC seem to live in two very different worlds when it comes to this lawsuit and the events that led to it.

“Given the substance of Rademacher’s request for religious immunity, and his actions in support of his request, any of the beliefs expressed in his request or explained to ABC are not in the sense of religious immunity. It is indisputable that it was not “religious”. Attorney Paul Hastings LLP of ABC stated in its March 16 opposition:read here). “In fact, Rademacher lacks an answer to the ultimate question, because…his religion draws nothing beyond his own imagination – no books, no leaders. , no creed, no history, no clergy, nothing,” the network adds sharply. “I don’t have a religion to join,” Rademacher is quoted as saying to Erin Nguyen, director of employee relations at Walt Disney Television, when questioned in his petition for exemption.

ABC points out to the court that the company gave many employees religious exemptions for vaccines.However, none of these exemptions were valid general Hospital, guess so

mockery of actors Appeared on December 15, 2021 Fox News and Tucker Carlson A typo in 2022 that meant 2021, and an apparent “revisionist” finish to his convictions in the months since he first filed his lawsuit, ABC concludes: increase. We will be back in October 2022. ”

It clearly feels like they have cigarettes now, but Rademacher’s lawyers don’t see it that way.

Revolving around July 2021 decision by Disney CEO at the time Bob Chapek Radmacher’s alleged lack of legislation requiring all media giant employees to be vaccinated against Covid and Disney’s attempts to accommodate those seeking religious exemption ‘s March 16 filing puts a knife in the public stance of non-compliance on his part at ABC. “Things changed last summer when ABC produced a document showing that GH Producers had decided to remove Ingo from the show in response to Ingo’s comments about politics and Covid policies even before ABC adopted its Covid vaccine policy. That also changed when we first filed documents stating that we decided not to mandate Covid shots and changed our policy virtually overnight at the end of July 2021.”

At the deposition of the lawsuit, Rademacher publicly stated that he had been amputated. GH He “couldn’t find work on other TV shows and had to move his family from California to Florida due to financial difficulties.” The actor, who finished his other gig as a part-time LA County lifeguard, also put his Hawaii home on the market for $6 million in mid-2022. While returning to power, Trump, who endorsed Rademacher, the primary caregiver of his three children, said, “I don’t consider myself conservative or liberal… issues, especially the environment, the right to privacy, and freedom of speech.”

ABC did not comment on Rademacher’s latest filing when contacted by Deadline.

Meanwhile, for the largest media company in town, Rademacher’s lead counsel had something to say. “Our findings make it clear that ABC kicked him out of Ingo because of his political views, views that the company disagreed with,” says Scott J. Street. . “We are confident in the progress-based litigation, and we are confident the judge will give us the opportunity to present this litigation to a jury.”

We’ll know in two weeks if that trust is guaranteed.